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Woman Charged in ‘Monkey Mystery’ Break-In

Posted at 6:43 PM, Apr 16, 2014
and last updated 2014-04-16 18:43:00-04

OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich (April 16, 2014) – Investigators in Ottawa County say they’ve arrested a woman tied to bizarre break-in at a local storage unit.

Kimberly Cooper

Kimberly Cooper, 47

47-year-old Kimberly Cooper of Grand Haven is charged with breaking and entering and for having burglary tools in connection to the crime.

She was arrested on Monday after deputies returned to the scene of a reported break-in at a Grand Haven Township storage facility off Robbins Road.  A renter there called authorities after he found his storage unit had been broken into, also finding a stuffed monkey hanging by a noose with a note attached saying “This is You”.

About an hour and a half after the report came in, deputies returned to the scene to conduct a follow-up investigation and found Cooper inside the unit, along with stolen items from the unit inside her vehicle, including a wheelchair.

Investigators tell FOX17 the same storage unit had apparently been broken into before Monday.  The owner left a note saying “Stay out of here.  This is not your stuff” after finding evidence of a previous break-in on Sunday.  Apparently the hanging monkey was the response to the owner’s note.

Investigators say additional break-ins have occurred at the storage facility on occasion, but don’t believe Cooper was involved in those incidents.